Thomas Gordon

RETIRED, portland

Tom Gordon was Senior Counsel at Gordon & Polscer, L.L.C. in the Portland office. His practice was dedicated to insurance coverage litigation (including bad faith litigation), insurance defense litigation, appeals, complex commercial law, and technological torts. Tom was a member of the International Association of Defense Counsel and the Defense Research Institute (DRI), where he served on the National Board of Directors and as a member of its Law Institute.

Tom was an AV Rated Lawyer for more than 20 years. He was selected for inclusion in Super Lawyers, a peer-elected distinction limited to the top 5% of attorneys in Oregon, in 2008-2009 and 2011-2013. Tom was also selected as one of the "Best Lawyers in America" in 2011 and 2012, and as A Leading Lawyer in America in 2010 by Corporate Counsel.

Education & Credentials

B.S., Portland State University, 1971

J.D., Northwestern School of Law, Environmental Law Review, 1974

Admitted to Practice

Oregon State BarUnited States District Court, District of Oregon

United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

Professional Memberships & Activities

Defense Research Institute (Member of the National Board of Directors; Past Chair of Insurance Law Committee; past member of Law Institutes Committee, which plans and oversees all DRI seminars; DRI Task Force to compile Good Faith Claims Handling Guide for all 50 states)

Selected, U.S. Oregon District Court Task Force to Revise Local Federal Rules, 1994-1995

American Bar Association: Tort and Insurance Practice Section, Committee on Professional Liability, Vice-Chair; frequent speaker and author on insurance and toxic tort issues both for National Institutes and National Conventions; Employment Law Section

Oregon State Bar Association (Litigation Section; Business Law Section)

Oregon State Bar Task Force to analyze ethical issues when defending under reservation of rights by insurance company (appointed by Oregon State Bar President), 1994-1995

Multnomah County Bar Association

International Association of Defense Counsel (Vice-Chair of Insurance Law Committee; speaker on broad range of insurance topics at both mid-year and Annual meetings)

Oregon Association of Defense Counsel (Board of Directors, 1997-2001)

Liability Insurance Research Bureau (speaker at national seminar/workshops on a variety of CGL insurance issues with emphasis on exclusions in CGL policies)

Practicing Law Institute (speaker on CGL insurance topics, including use of experts in coverage litigation and trial issues in coverage litigation)